Sarah Kovich, founder of Rideshare2Vote, said her organization is dedicated to boosting voter turnout by offering free rides to and from polling places.
“Our mission is to get people off of their couches, help them feel like they have a voice and can be involved in the voting process,” she said.
Dallas Mayor Eric Johnson, who is running for reelection, will be the only mayoral candidate to appear on the printed ballot, although he’ll technically face off with write-in hopeful Kendal Richardson. City Council seats are also up for grabs, including in districts 8, 5 and 2.
Kovich’s organization has two arms: a partisan one aimed at balancing Texas’ government on the political scale and a nonpartisan one, called Rideshare2Vote Aware, geared toward efforts like social justice, voting and civil rights.
She said her organization has ballooned in recent years; it now serves several states throughout the U.S., including Ohio, Florida and Georgia. Rideshare2Vote's drivers can reach each of Texas’ 254 counties with a focus on what she calls the Big Four: Dallas, Tarrant, Denton and Collin counties.
Kovich noted that each legislative session, Texas lawmakers try to make voting more difficult.
“Every time the [Legislature] meets in Texas, there are what we would call voter suppression efforts,” she continued. “The drivers are trained in their local voting laws so that they can help the riders make sure that they can get their ballot cast. I am pleased to say we still have never had a voter turned away at the polls.”
Rideshare2Vote’s driving team can also aid voters with disabilities and provide vans that are wheelchair accessible. Kovich said the driver-volunteers “spend their time, their money, their gas, car maintenance” to help.
Advocates have blasted Texas as one of the trickiest states in the nation in which to register and vote. The Lone Star State recently ranked 46th in voting access, according to the 2022 Cost of Voting Index, a nonpartisan study.
Cliff Albright, co-founder and executive director of advocacy group Black Voters Matter, previously told the Observer that certain bills in the Texas Legislature seem to target voters of color.
“Everything's bigger in Texas,” Albright said at the time. “That is unfortunately the case when it comes to voter suppression — I mean, this is literally one of the worst in the country.”
The way Kovich sees it, efforts to restrict voting access are aimed at retaining power. Faced with an onslaught of ever-increasing limitations, some would-be voters may begin to feel apathetic, while others could become confused or fearful, she said.“Our goal is to turn what we're calling low-turnout voters into every-election voters in North Texas.” – Sarah Kovich, founder Rideshare2Vote
tweet this
Senate Bill 990, which would ban countywide polling places in Texas on Election Day, was approved by the Texas Senate last month before being referred to the House Elections Committee. Rideshare2Vote believes that this bill could make it even less convenient for many Texans to vote and exacerbate low turnout in the future.
During the May election two years ago, turnout in Dallas County clocked under 10%, according to D Magazine.
Cal Jillson, a political science professor at Southern Methodist University, expects turnout to be “pretty modest” this election, in the 6%–7% range. “Early voting seems to support that,” he said. “It’s been a trickle rather than a flood.”
Jillson views the idea of a ride-share voting service as a good one but hopes that drivers are careful; recent Texas election bills have put restraints on the kinds of help that people can give voters, he said. But enacting voting limitations may actually work to further mobilize folks, Jillson said, adding that “we've seen unusually high turnout in the last several Texas election cycles” in terms of state historic levels.
Basically, people don’t like to get pushed around, he said.
“They don't like the Republican Party, in this case, to be putting hurdles in their way to casting an honest vote. And when Republicans see that Democrat turnout may be up, they get energized as well,” he said. “So, these fights over how to construct the rules around elections tend to energize the electorate in the short term, but it may over the longer term affect who votes and how many people vote.”
To hitch a ride from the organization, you can visit Rideshare2Vote’s website or call 888-977-2250. Kovich said Rideshare2Vote runs during the municipals, as well as during early voting and national, run-off and special elections.
“Once you ride with us, we will always call you back for future elections and invite you to take a ride again every time there's an election in your area,” she continued. “Our goal is to turn what we're calling low-turnout voters into every-election voters in North Texas.”
